Details of court trials and the process of extradition
The initial condition of Hill’s bail stipulates that he is allowed to reside in Lisbon, Portugal while the case continues. This was asked for by Burlingame through a letter he presented to the court on July 3, 2024. Hill is however obligated to go back to New York whenever his presence is required in court.
Today was the initial open court session in the United States Department of Justice’s lawsuit against William Lonergan Hill and Keonne Rodriguez, the developers of Samourai Wallet, since May 28, 2024. This marks the first time Rodriguez made a court appearance for this particular case.— Frank Corva (@frankcorva) July 10, 2024
During the hearing, the key argument put forth by the defense lawyers, Roger Burlingame and Jeffrey Brown, was that Hill had given up his right to extradition prior to being formally charged with extradition offenses.
- Hill was brought before the court for arraignment on July 9, 2024, a day prior.
- 27 electronic devices were confiscated from Hill in Portugal.
- Once the FBI has retrieved and scrutinized the information from the mentioned devices, it will enable discovery for Hill.
- The case has already led to the discovery of Rodriguez, who used to be Hill’s partner at Samourai and is a co-defendant in the case.
- Hill will be let out on bail, but the specific bail amount was not indicated.
Another crucial condition of Hill’s bail is his obligation to sport an ankle monitor while residing in Portugal. It was mentioned by the prosecution, during a post-hearing conversation with the defense, that the FBI would be responsible for overseeing the operation of this ankle bracelet.
